Help send UP mom and son to Ghana

Diana Redden is an Uplifting Parents participant who emigrated from Ghana 10 years ago. She hadn’t been back to Ghana since moving to America, but returned this summer to care for her ailing mother. Her family in Ghana will meet her 8-year-old son, Denzel, for the first time.

The cost of international travel is high, especially for a single-parent college student like Diana, who joined the UP program in 2019 and is now just two semesters away from earning a bachelor’s degree in nursing from South Dakota State University - Rapid City campus. She plans to work in the Black Hills area healthcare system when she graduates in 2022.

“Diana has not been able to see any of her family in the last 10 years. It will be beneficial for her well-being to visit family in her home country, and because she is studying nursing, she can be a great help with her mother’s medical care while there,” mentor Stacey Hahne said.

We're raising funds for travel costs to keep Diana financially stable during her last year in college. Donations can be sent to: Catholic Social Services, 529 Kansas City St., Rapid City, SD 57701. Please mark donations:  Diana to Ghana

Get trained: Mental Health First Aid

Does your parish, workplace or organization need to know how to better help someone experiencing a mental health or substance abuse challenge?

Catholic Social Services’ Director of Community Outreach Dominque Charlson can help with that!

On May 28, Charlson trained 14 employees of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Cathedral in Rapid City during an eight-hour Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) certification. OLPH staff is now better able to assist adults experiencing mental health distress.  Charlson also offers a one-hour training, “What is Mental Health First Aid,” by Zoom or in-person.  To register or learn more, click here. 

Charlson has decades of experience teaching various mental health courses, including MHFA, which offers concrete tools and answers key questions like “What can I do?” and “Where can someone find help?”

UP celebrates graduates; new director

Congratulations to the nine single parents enrolled in the Uplifting Parents program who are now college graduates!. They earned degrees this spring 2021 from various universities and colleges in accounting, elementary education, human resources management, earth sciences, applied biology and more!

The UP program also welcomes Director Jessica Perkins, MSW.  Jessica and her active-duty military husband, John, have two young sons.  Jessica will oversee the next round of UP applications, which is open from June 15 through July 15.

“I’m excited to join the UP team in the important work of helping single-parent college students succeed,” she said.

Resilient Parenting Class June 22

Resilient Parenting is a brain-based trauma approach to parenting for families with children struggling with attachment issues, trauma, loss and/or separation early in their life.

The 7-week course begins June 22 and teaches skills to help reduce controlling behavior, improve relational skills, improve emotional control and improve caregiver safety.

Resilient Parenting is helpful for biological, foster, or adoptive parents and caregivers in any capacity.